Convertible automobile-body.



2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATENTED JULY 11, 1905.

H. E. VOGEL. CONVERTIBLE AUTOMOBILE BODY.

APPLIGATION FILED FEB- 8, 1905.

Fly/fur lit fit I No. 794.650. v

PATENTED JULY 11 1905.

H. F. VOGEL.

CONVERTIBLE AUTOMOBILE BODY.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 8. 1905.

2 SHEETS-8HEET 2.

UNTTED STATEs Patented July 11, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY F. VOGEL, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO ST. LOUIS OARCOMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION.

CONVERTIBLE AUTOMOBILE-BODY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 794,650, dated July 11,1905.

Application filed February 8, 1905. Serial No- 244,744.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY F. VOGEL, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city of St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in ConvertibleAutomobileBodies, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, formingpart of this specification.

My invention relates to an automobilebody provided with separable andinter changeable parts, whereby it is susce tible of comfortable servicein open or close. condition in either summer or winter use.

The improvement includes as novel features a stationary canopyconstituting apermanent member of the body, to whicn. it is joined byfixed posts, a stationary wall at the rear of the body beneath saidcanopy to shield passengers from dust that would be drawn into the bodyby suction due to the rapid motion of the automobile, removable sidepanels located forward of the rear wall beneath the canopy, aremovablepartition at the rear of the front seat of the body, andinterchangeable doors, one of which is pro vided with a drop-sash.

Figure I is a side elevation of my improved automobile-body in conditionfor summer service. Fig. II is a view, partly in plan and partly inhorizontal section, illustrating one side of the body in closedcondition for win-.

ter service and the other side in open condition for summer service.Fig. III is a side elevation of my automobile-body in condition forwinter service. Fig. IV is an enlarged horizontal section taken'on lineIV IV, Fig. III.

1 designates my automobile-body roper, which is provided with a front orrivers seat 2 and a rear seat 3.

4 designates front posts extending vertically from the front end of thebody proper.

5 designates door-posts extending vertically from the body properintermediate of the seats 2 and 3, and 6 designates rear posts extendingvertically from the rear seat 3. All

of these posts are permanently fixed to the body proper to remainconstantly in service.

7 designates a canopy permanently secured to the upper ends of the posts4, 5, and 6 and which overhangs the entire body proper.

8 designates panels mounted between the rear posts 6 and constitutingthe rear wall of the automobile-body above the rear seat 3. Thesepanels, which are preferably in the form of sashes and provided withpanes of glass, constitute the rear wall of the automobile-body by whichthe ingress of dust and dirt is excluded from the body when theautomobile is traveling at a high rate of speed, which induces a suctionat the rear of the body. The parts thus far described and which arereferred to as permanent are present in the automobile-body in eitherits open or closed conditions. When the body is in condition for openservice, it is used with the parts described without any additionthereto with the exception of detachable plain low doors 9, (see Fig.I,) that control the doorways between the door-posts 5.

I will next describe the parts by which the rear seat 3 of theautomobile is inclosed for winter service.

10 designates removable side panels seated between the rear door-posts 5and the fore most rear posts 6, (see Figs. II to IV, inclusive,) thesepanels preferably having panes of glass mounted therein. These panelsare seated against packing-strips 11, secured to attaching-strips 12,that are seated in the rear door-posts 5 and foremost rear posts 6, asseen in Fig. IV. The strips llare enlarged at their outer edges toprevent escape of the panels 10 in outward directions.

1 3 designates retaining-strips seated against the inner sides of therear door-posts and foremost rear posts and overlapping the side panels10 to confine said panels. These retaining-strips are secured to saidposts by confining-screws 14, that pass through the strips and enterinto nuts 15, embedded in the posts 5 and 6. It will be seen that theside panels 10 may be introduced or removed by the separation of theretaining-strips 13 Whenever the automobile-body is to be converted fromcondition for closed service or open service.

16 designates a detachable partition located above the back of the frontor drivers seat 2 and seating in the foremost door-posts 5, (see Figs.11 and IV,) this partition being preferably provided with a transparentsheet of glass. When the automobile-body is in condition for closedservice, the partition 16 is utilized, and when it is in condition foropen service' said partition is removed, and thereby provides for theinclosing of the rear portion of the automobile-body at the front underone condition and for communication between the front and rear of thebody under the other condition.

17 designates a detachable door for use in the automobile-body when itis in closed service and which is provided with a sashreceiving pocket18. (See Fig. IV.)

19 designates detachable guide-strips secured to the door-posts 5 abovethe door 17, and 20 is a drop-sash that operates in these guides and isadapted to be lowered into the door-pocket 18. When the rear part of theautomobile is entirely closed, the drop-sash 20 is in the elevatedcondition, (seen in Figs. III and IV,) in which it is suitably upheld.When it is desired to open the door 17, the drop-sash is lowered intothe pocket in the door, and the door may then be readily opened. Whenthe automobile-body is to be again converted into condition for openservice, the doors 17 and the drop-sash are remelved and the doors 9substituted in their stea When the automobile-body is to be convertedfrom condition for winter service to condition for summer service, thedoor 17 is removed and the door 9 substituted in its stead. The sidepanels 10 and the detachable partition 16, separating the forwardportion of the body from the rear portion thereof, are removed, therebypermitting free circulation of air through the body in its opencondition.

The panels 8 and 10 may be of square, oval, or other shape and may beflat or bent into contour corresponding to the size and con- 2. Thecombination with an automobilebody proper, of posts extending verticallyfrom said body proper, a canopy supported by said posts, a rearwallpermanently mounted between the rear of said body and said canopyand detachable side panels located between pairs of said posts,substantially as set forth.

3. The combination with an automobilebody proper, of posts extendingvertically from said body proper, a canopy supported by said posts,detachable side panels located between pairs of said posts, andremovable retaining-strips secured to said posts and overlapping saidpanels, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination with an automobilebody proper, of posts extendingvertically from said body proper, a canopy supported by said posts,detachable side panels located between pairs of said posts, removableretaining-strips secured to said posts and overlapping said panels, andpacking-strips interposed between said panels and said posts,substantially as set forth.

5. The combination with an automobilebody proper provided with front andrear seats, of posts extending vertically from said body proper, acanopy supported by said posts, a rear wall permanently mounted betweenthe top of said rear seat and said canopy and a detachable partitionsurmounting the back of said front seat, substantially as set forth.

HENRY F. VOGEL.

In presence of- A. DIOKMANN, M. C. MURPHY.

